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TECO Says Cable Will Not Harm Eagles

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By YVETTE C. HAMMETT, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 9, 2008

SEFFNER - A bald eagles' nest that has been home to families of eagles off Old Hillsborough Avenue for more than 40 years lies along the preferred route for a new Tampa Electric Co. high-voltage transmission line.

The utility has committed to buffering the nest to protect it from adverse effects from the electrical cables.

At least one neighbor wants more details before she can feel comfortable with the proposal. Susan Watson, whose land backs up to the forest where the nest sits, plans to meet with neighbors this month to discuss what can be done to ensure the eagles are protected.

Watson said she recently contacted the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission and was promised the agency would document the nest and communicate with TECO.

The 230,000-volt transmission line, which will help provide electricity to a growing number of Tampa Bay area residents and businesses, would run 30 miles between the Willow Oak substation off State Road 60 in Mulberry and the new Davis substation in Temple Terrace. TECO chose that route over two others.

County wildlife biologist Keith Wiley said he is reviewing the proposal but believes the proposed buffer would be sufficient to shield the protected birds. The corridor of TECO property nearest the nest, as shown in the utility's documents, is about a mile wide.

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has proposed new management guidelines for active bald eagle nests that call for buffers of 330 to 660 feet from the nests. TECO officials, in their application for the new corridor, have promised to abide by those guidelines.

The electric company also plans to monitor the nest for 18 months and study the flight patterns of the eagle pair that uses it to determine the best ways to avoid disturbing them. Gov. Charlie Crist and a state transmission line siting board must approve the route before construction of the power line can begin. The siting board is expected to vote during the last quarter of 2008, TECO spokesman Rick Morera said.

Residents living around the eagle's nest, which sits high in a tree north of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and west of Valrico Road, have worried that the birds that lay eggs and rear their young there each year would be harmed by the high-voltage lines or abandon the nest.

Alice Gabriel said TECO has asked her for permission to cross through her land to get close to the nest and study the eagles' flight patterns.

"The eagles are already here again this year," Gabriel said. "My in-laws saw them both on the ground the other day picking things up."

The pair reared two young birds in 2006 and two in 2005, she said.

"We have documented over 25 species of birds alone that use these wetlands and forest," Watson said. "We have otters, several varieties of hawks and a lot of other rare and common animals. We're hoping TECO won't destroy this whole forest.

"It's the only forest in this area," Watson said. "It's an oak hammock and wetlands. If you didn't live around here, you wouldn't realize the number of animal species that use it."

The eagles' nest near Watson's house is one of two in the area. Another active nest is on Sydney Road in Valrico.

Bald eagles, the national emblem of the United States since 1782, have gone through periods of decline during the past two centuries but have made a comeback since the use of the pesticide DDT was banned in 1972.

Today, one of the major threats the birds face is a growing human population and loss of habitat.

The federal wildlife service removed bald eagles from its threatened species list in June. Although they are still protected under the U.S. Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, eagles continue to be harassed, injured and killed by guns, traps, power lines and pollutants, according to the American Eagle Foundation.

Public awareness, habitat protection and strict enforcement of laws shielding eagles are considered the primary means of protecting bald eagles, foundation officials say.

Florida supports the largest bald eagle population in the lower 48 states, with an estimated 1,200 nesting pairs.

Reporter Yvette C. Hammett can be reached at (813) 657-4532 or at yhammett@tampatrib.com.

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